"Healing happens when your inner leader

chooses connection over protection, even when it hurts."

– Glenn S. Cohen

#CenterForNI

Ever wonder how love can shift from bliss to battlefield? You’re not alone. One minute you’re wrapped in warmth and shared dreams, and the next you’re locked in a painful loop asking, How did we get here? The answer may not lie in what’s happening between you, but in what’s happening within you.

When conflict erupts, it’s rarely about the surface-level stuff, the dishes, the text that went unanswered, the tone that felt off. More often, it’s your tender, unhealed places being activated. And in a split second, your protective personalities kick in. Your nervous system gets hijacked, and the person you once turned to, becomes the person you brace against.

This isn’t a relationship flaw; it’s a human one. And if both of you are triggered at the same time, you’re not just in an argument, you’re in a full-blown inner mutiny. The blame, the shutdown, the spirals... they make sense when you realize what's underneath.

So, the deeper question becomes: Where is the mindful empowered part of you that chooses to pause, breathe, and lead from love instead of pain?

Without this awareness, couples end up protecting their wounds instead of healing them. But when you begin your I work alongside your WE work, the battlefield softens. The emotional wildfires settle. What once felt like falling apart begins to feel like falling into something sacred.

It’s like standing barefoot on a cracked, smoky road, behind you, the ruins of what was. But ahead? A winding path bathed in golden light, lined with wildflowers and new possibility. Not built in spite of what you’ve endured, but because of it. You don’t need to be perfect. Just present. Aware. Willing.

Does your relationship feel stuck in protection mode more than connection mode? What might shift if you met each other from your healed, empowered selves?

If this speaks to your heart, feel free to DM me. You can also visit my website to request an initial interview, subscribe to my Apple or Spotify podcast, and sign up for my Substack newsletter at the bottom of my homepage.

Wishing you a peaceful path forward. Big hugs and lots of love,

Glenn 🙏🌻

Get full access to Neurological Intelligence: Lessons in LIfe, Love and Healing at centerforni.substack.com/subscribe